English Trifle Read Online Free Page A

fell. “No one can help me with this,” she said before disappearing through the door.

Chapter 3
    ~ ~ ~
    The woman’s cryptic comments hung heavily in the air, but only a few moments passed before Sadie turned back to the kitchen, one of the largest—and cleanest—kitchens she’d ever seen. Countertops and sinks extended along one of the four walls, glass-fronted refrigerators and freezers along another, with ovens and stoves along a third. A huge butcher-block table stood in the center of the room, with a couple stools tucked underneath. A nearly full garbage can meant someone needed to take out the trash, but every other aspect of the kitchen was shined and polished to perfection—not what Sadie would have expected for what was essentially a commercial kitchen churning out food for a household and its staff three times a day—four if you counted high tea; five if elevenses were added to the list. She reflected on the details for only a moment before remembering that Breanna still needed help. Sadie found a dishrag in a drawer near the sink and ran it under cool water before ringing it out, hoping that the tight feeling in her stomach brought on by letting the assistant cook leave would disappear in a few moments. She hoped she hadn’t made too horrible a mistake.
    “Lean over again,” she said when she returned to the dish room and found Breanna sitting up. Sadie moved Breanna’s hair out of the way and laid the cloth over her neck. “Deep breaths,” she said, while smoothing out Breanna’s hair. Within a few seconds, Breanna’s shoulders softened and her response helped relax Sadie as well. She took a deep breath while a thousand questions swirled through her mind. Who was the woman she’d just let go? What was her relationship to John Henry? Why didn’t Mrs. Land want the assistant cook to follow her? Why did Mrs. Land insist on leaving in the first place? What if she was the murderer and Sadie had let her go?
    “I texted Liam,” Breanna said. Her voice sounded better. “He hasn’t texted back.”
    “I thought all he had to do was say good-bye to his dad before we left,” Sadie said. “He’s been up there all day, hasn’t he?” She hadn’t minded waiting for him while they were enjoying their tea, but now his absence was unnerving. Why hadn’t Mrs. Land returned yet?
    Breanna nodded and looked up at her mom, worried. “He wanted as much time with his dad as possible—he’s been on the phone most of the day. Do you think he’s okay?”
    “I’m sure he’s fine,” Sadie said—but mostly because she was a mother and that’s the kind of thing mothers told their daughters when their daughters turned to them for help.
    “I’d feel a lot better if he were here. Should we go find him?”
    “I’m hoping Mrs. Land found him for us,” Sadie said, looking at the double doors separating them from the main part of the house with a curious kind of longing. What was going on up there? She hated being left out of the rising action she had no doubt was taking place up there in the sitting room.
    Breanna sat up and leaned her head back, placing the rag on her forehead as she closed her eyes again. “Maybe that’s why he hasn’t responded; maybe he’s calling the police.”
    “Maybe so,” Sadie said, looking at her watch. They were supposed to leave by 4:30. It was 4:26. “How are you feeling?” Sadie asked, placing the back of her fingers against Breanna’s cheek. It didn’t feel too hot or too cold; she hoped the shock had passed.
    “Better,” Breanna said, opening her eyes and looking around the dish room. “I’ve never seen a dead body before,” she said, removing the rag as she straightened up. “At least not a human one.”
    Sadie, however, had seen several in her lifetime. Perhaps that made it a bit less traumatic for her, or maybe she was just being strong for her daughter. Either way, she wasn’t nearly as unnerved as she imagined most people would be. Her curiosity,